Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Opposition Business in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

That is probably where I was heading. I have not been able to get much out of Treasury. Quite frankly, I am going to see if I can persist with them a little more. But ultimately it is your department that has responsibility for Customs and the duty deferral so I thought it would be worth while to at least give you the opportunity to explain why Treasury knocked back the duty deferral, the basis of the $89 million figure that they arrived at—how they arrived at the $89 million on the duty deferral system itself—and whether any other options were canvassed before coming up with the revised current system, which appears not to have been costed. That is the general thrust of the issue. I would have thought that it was a matter that you, Minister, would have wanted to find out about. You may already have done that but are unable to say, in which case, because I do not understand it, I will continue to press for clarity in this area. Is the minister aware of how many companies have expressed an interest in signing up to the Accredited Client Program at this point and have been able to meet the requirements or have indicated that they will be pursuing it?